Gardening 101: How to Care for an Orchid

Many bemoan orchid-growing incompetence. My problem? I can't kill my scraggly supermarket orchids after they stop blooming. My secret: ignore them. They sit on a west-facing windowsill for months, then bloom again in a desperate bid for attention.

For more attentive gardeners, here are top tips:

Pick a Hardy Variety

With 30,000+ species, choose easy-going types: oncidiums, phalaenopsis, and paphiopedilums tolerate low indoor light.

Orchids attach to trees in nature—extreme survivors, not fragile. Yellow Moth Orchid in 7-inch ceramic urn, $99.95 from White Flower Farm.

Bright, Indirect Light

Yellow phalaenopsis at NYBG orchid show. Bright room, no direct sun, no drafts.

Proper Potting

Orchids grow attached to plants in wild—don't use potting soil. Use loose bark they can clutch. Orchid Bark, $10 from Terrain.

Drainage, Please

Orchids hate wet roots. Choose pot with good drainage, add pebble layer at bottom. Vivid pink phalaenopsis, $15 from Odom's Orchids.

Feed Me

Allow bark to dry between waterings. Use liquid fertilizer every third watering. Organic Orchid Food (1.25 lb), $8.75 from Amazon.

More orchid inspiration: Essential Equipment for Orchids, The Orchid That Owned Me, Greatest Orchid Show on Earth.